As a matter of fact, in a two week span I found and started a new job, found and bought a new car, found and moved into a new apartment, and my wife found and started a new job.  That was a two week period, even though most of it took place in the first week with carry over into the second.  Since then, we’ve been working, decorating, and driving around Denver; this town I’m not at all familiar with yet.  It’s been a lot to deal with, but that’s life, huh?

On the writing front, I’m now a copywriter at the American Humane Association.  Reading up on child and animal neglect and abuse and synthesizing it into a heart-wrenching and visceral thing.  Hopefully a heart-wrenching and visceral thing that will land us more donations, but that’s neither here nor there.

There have also been meetings with possible investors, advise-givers, and artists in hopes that one of the many projects I have floating around in my brain ether is produced.  At this point, it feels like a lot of impasses all at once, but it’s those difficult roadblocks that provide the fortitude to keep going.  So, that’s where I’m at.  Waiting for things to happen, nagging people to get things to happen, and continuing to write.  Seems to be the way of most, if not all, writers, so at least I feel like I’m getting somewhere.

Coinciding this all this is an unassailable feeling that we want to go back to Seoul.  We miss Korea, the people, the subway, and the bussle.  We miss our friends and the connections we made. But, at the same time, we recognize that we’re here, with a new car and 12-month lease that will anchor us at least for a little while.  There’s still that hope though, that in a year we’ll be back on Line 2 to Gangnam for dinner or the 730 bus on our way to the outskirts of Itaewon to visit Faysal and Misun or walking through the crowds at Dongdaemun to buy a new sweater or shirt.  It’s so odd to thing that people all around me equate owning a car to independence, while I feel that riding the subway gave me the most freedom.  I could write, listen to podcasts, and watch people’s interactions with each other without fear that I might drive off the road.  That’s liberation.  Not having to care.  And I guess that’s where I want to be professionally, too.  Focus on what I love even if I’m working on a project that doesn’t matter to me.  There’s freedom in the confirmation, there’s freedom in being swaddled by my laptop’s keyboard and wikipedia research and Final Draft.

Today, I’m a copywriter and learning a lot, but tomorrow I’ll be writing for me.  I live for those days.

Hope you’re all doing well.  Sorry again for the delay.  Hopefully I’ll write more now that I’m in front of a computer all day long (I just spit at my Acer monitor and IBM Thinkpad).  In the mean time, think about your path and ride it.  After all, if it weren’t for that positive thinking, I wouldn’t have written a book and I wouldn’t be able to hone my craft by writing copy all day long.

Our year in Seoul has come to an end and we’re back in the US of A, Chicago to be exact, and visiting my family.  Since arriving my sister and brother-in-law has given birth to their first child (a son), Lindsay and I have been massively jetlaggy, my computer has been replaced with a much nicer MacBook Pro, we have smartphones, we’ve eaten at Chipotle, and noted several times that everywhere we go things look “fat”.  That’s no necessarily a knock on anything but a note that in Seoul, the streets, cars, and people were exceptionally fit.  There aren’t large swathes of land to bound about in, not many all-you-can-eat buffets, and cars are suited for the compact city life.

Aside from all that, we’re attempting to remove the blisters of reverse culture shock, something many people don’t believe exists (it does), and catch up with people, places, and things.  It’s been nice so far.  Playing with my sister’s dog Winni, copious sleeping, and not wearing coats in the surprisingly warm November days.

Soon we’ll fly out to Denver to visit Lindsay’s family and await signals and signs and perhaps a punch to the neck lettings us know where we need to be next.  Applying for jobs and grad school along the way, we’re observing that this return has been incredibly positive.  Family visits, weather, fat people, it’s all coming up aces.  We’re sad to be away from our loving friends in Seoul but happy to be with family in friends here in the US and preparing ourselves for our next adventure/stage in life.

It all feels positive thought.  Positive and full of deep, relaxing breathes.  More to come as time permits.

As it stands, some things have happened and others have not.  To be more obtuse, the world still turns.  Or to put it a different way, I’ve spent the last 8 months on a single project: ‘Han’.  Now, ‘Han’ began as a graphic novel concept and ended as a webcomic.  Most recently I’m pretty sure I mentioned that ‘Han’ was on a rather permanent hiatus and now I can’t get the damn thing out of my head.  That’s to say that while I should be branching off, considering and planning and skeletoning new stories or projects my mind comes right back to ‘Han’.

I started going at it from different angles.  Maybe I could create more this…  If this character were this then there would need to be other characters to counterbalance it an…  You get the idea.  The problem is that ‘Han’, right now, isn’t being worked on, with the exception of over-and-over in my brain.

Many of you are reading this saying, “no,” you’d say, “Don’t give up on ‘Han’.  There has to be a way,” and there might be. I’ve been trying to create something more accessible and perhaps more inclined toward solid, professional backing but it’s been slow moving.  Like the expanding universe, slow.  Or plate tectonics.  And that’s boring.  Also to say “it’s not allowing me to work on other ideas because my brain (the river that it is) delta’s right back to ‘Han’,” the bastard.  On the plus side, however, this new angle, this new way of looking at ‘Han’ is supremely exciting and might be much of what’s keeping my mind on it.  It’s a chance to do something really fun/awesome/more culturally significant than slap bracelets.  Damn, I broke my string of earth-based metaphors

To bring things back to earth and that’s how, in a hackneyed way, I bring it back, I’d like to mention that I have a box of Reading With Pictures books sitting in our apartment.  We’ve successfully sold/given way (mostly) around a third of them. We’ve sent emails out to friends and family about the many places the anthology has been mentioned/I have been mentioned (horn successfully tooted) including the super cool article in the Korea Herald about ‘Han’ titled U.S. graphic novelist explores han: experiences it in the process (this may not actually be the title).  There’s something rewarding about being mentioned as a graphic novelist even if my graphic novel never got off the ground.

Well, I guess that’s all the rambling madness I have in me for now.  Thank you for your continued love and patronage, your continued visits to this site as well as ‘Han’, and for purchasing the ‘Reading With Pictures Anthology’.  That is to say, if you haven’t bought the book you should be ashamed of yourself and be cast out amongst the reeds.

Nothing but love!  Bye for now.

Since then, scammers have tried new ways of luring stupid people into their binary clutches.  They’ve tried credit card fraud, data-mining bots, and “get rich quick” promises.  To put it simply, they’ve evolved.

This morning, I received a blast from the past.  A scam email so sneaky it made it by gmail’s careful spam filters yet so bad as to remind me of those good ol’ days of “I cannot lay claim to this money unless I transfer it out”.  Riddled with it’s “mutual benefit”…I give you General Arnold Quaninoo:

Title: “I do kindly wait on your reply for the investment.”
Body:

Dear Sir/Madam

With warm heart I write you this mail in respect of my intention of investing my mineral resources in your care as my trustee to oversee the investment due to my political affiliation with the united nation as former peace keep.

I am General Arnold Quainoo seeking your advice of investing the above mention investment in your care due to trust and confident that I have build in you for the mutual benefit of the investment and our children. I need your undivided attention as to what my proposal is about.

Kindly notify me of your interest in order to proceed with the investment for what it with stand for. In respect of the investment mention above, with your interest to this investment, I shall offer you a negotiable percentage endorse by signatures for feature reference.

I kindly wait on your reply for our mutual benefit.

Best Regards:

General Arnold Quainoo
Email: gen.arnoldquainoo@gmail.com

What’s great about this is that General Arnold Quainoo is an actual person.  You can put him into google and find articles, websites, and videos of the good General addressing issues in Liberia.  But, obviously, he wouldn’t have a gmail account starting with his title of “gen”.

5 points for creativity, -3 for grammar and punctuation, and -2 for originality.  Sorry, General.  Evolution’s much harder then we all thought.

Lately I’ve been reading American Lion by Jon Meacham and Player Piano by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.  – this is after I finished Slaughterhouse V for the first time.  My immediate reactions so far are “brilliant” and “whoa” or even interrupting my wife to tell her something that I’ve just read.  These are the normal reactions when reading something that touches you, something that effects you either positively or not.  Their high points in your reading but they ironically lead to low points for me.

What I mean to say is that reading something great should be a motivation but it’s not always.  At times I’ll read something staggering and want nothing more then to write something in that same vein, hoping to stagger the population or something, Mark Twain might say, to shake people from their stupor; that’s not a quote, just an observation and suggestion of what Mark Twain might say.  But therein, as Admiral Ackbar in his infinite online video iterations, will tell you is a trap.  Because writing something with the soul purpose of knocking someone on their ass or shaking off the societal strains put on by the overbearing and misguided words of some megalomaniac man is a trap.  It really can’t be done.  Sure, creative writing teachers have been saying for years to “write with intention” but it doesn’t always work.  If you’re like me, all too often those intentions and purposes derail the story.  Making a well plotted piece a true “piece”.

But that’s not all!  This same derailment can come from  comments both positive or negative.  Hell, someone could shower praise upon you, fill your heart with such happiness that those tasks you were loathe for in the past turn  enjoyable.  It won’t stop there though!  You go home, a skip in your step as you ignore the intermittent rain that has annoyed you for the last week or the fact that you forgot your umbrella.  Then things start to get real.  You read over the review too many times.  You’ve sent it to everyone in your address book in hopes that they’ll share in your glowing moment until there’s a thought that “what if I can’t live up to it?”  What happens then?  I’ll tell you, everything stops.  You’re crippled by a moment that should have been glorious and provided you with enough boast-fuel for the next month has turned into a sprained brain.

To sum this up, there’s no way to tell whether you’re reading will effect you for better or worse.  You can portend that a novel, newspaper article, or trip to the market will actually bring positive results and help you plow through a particularly difficult section of your book, script, short story, whatever.  But that doesn’t mean you should fear those activities.  On the contrary.  I know I offered up some truly incredible points here but the fact is, they’ll only effect you for a short time.  At the top I mentioned that my current funk will probably only last a few hours or the rest of the day, perhaps someone reading this will have moments where they’re unable to hit the keys for months on end.  But think about it, you’re being effected by something.  You’re letting it control your mind, your thinking, your life instead of breast stroke you forward.  Doesn’t that boggle the mind?  Doesn’t it just make you angry at how your mind has decided to process that moment or nugget of information?  Stupid brain.  What the hell?!

The key is, I’ve found, to harness your stupid brain and use those lull-filled moments to get you further than you thought.  After all, what’s a better motivation than being annoyed with yourself?  I don’t think there is anything.

So, get out there and get some writing done.  Don’t let your brain win, let your brain win!  Also, read this awesome review of the ‘Reading With Pictures Anthology’, including some very nice things said about yours truly.

You can’t derail me brain, moment, or book!  Hancomic.com

The growing anti-foreign sentiment doesn’t just dwell in the US. We deal with it here in Korea and now issues in Japan are starting to receive more of the world’s eye. And it doesn’t end there either as all countries have groups that – fearing losing their identity, country, and culture – have lashed out in one way or another.

But, this does seem to be proof that the world has changed substantially and we’re now taking notice. The world is no longer what it once was and everyone is afraid and looking at the past. The problem with doing so, however, is the rose colored glasses people often wear while thinking about the past.

If the Japanese protestors decide to act against Chinese or Korean students, especially children, the world will not only cry foul, they’ll wonder if this is a step backward for Japan. For such a beautiful country they have a fractured culture and a history that all of Asia still remembers.

P.S. – After more thought, I’d like to point out that signs and placards that read “The Volunteer Corps Against Lawless Koreans” or “Expel barbarians” (examples from the Japanese rallies) sound remarkably similar to the diatribes of former Japanese military and political rallies before the 1910 annexation of Korea by the Japanese.  It is clear that whereas before Japan seemed to feel powerful and strong, both militarily and economically as well as in their national psychology, as their nation began their drive to take over Asia, now Japan has no actual military and their economy has struggled and their job-less rates have remained on the decline for the last 30 years while Korea and China have grown and flourished.  Their frustration is a direct parallel to what has happened in the U.S. those people who have been in power since the Declaration of Independence feel they no longer have the ability to do what they once did.

Maybe this is a race issue, maybe it’s a psychological issue.  Either way, the results have been negative, angry, and will lead to violence.

Writing a book often becomes a full-time job. And not only just the writing, mind you. The research, interviews, and outlining process might be the most difficult of all as you attempt to create from the air something. Once you get all that down, the book probably isn’t as difficult. That is, unless you’re writing like a jerk (Jack Kerouac). The truth is, once you have your break through, once the story starts to run, you’re able to work on it in your spare time. And that’s what the next few months have in store for me. For, you see, I have acquired a day job.

And what a terrifying omen that may bring. Since we arrived here in Seoul, I was terrified at the prospect of having to teach or work in an office again because working in an office and teaching aren’t for everyone (especially not me). And even though I did try and apply and go in for interviews with schools here, things didn’t work to much great disappointment (WOOOOOOO!). In that time I was able to research, perform interviews, and create a solid outline for the book – as stated above – and focus on the creation process. The birth of an idea. But now, poppa needs a day job.

Why? Well, I’m married and we’re struggling. Living in a large city has massive advantages in its brilliant public transportation and equally massive disadvantages in the price of a box of cereal. But you pay anyway because, hell, living in Seoul is incredible. So, after floundering, without fault on my end, for seven months, I packed it in and focused again on finding work. And not just because we need the money. It has far more to do with being an adult and not being a “layabout”.

Of course, most people of my generation, Generation Meh, would love nothing more than to be inactive, video game playing, corrugated potato chip eating philistines, but that’s childish and, lets face it, not my MO. Having lifted myself out of my desk chair and detached my brain stem from my USB port (I’ll miss you data) it feels a lot like failure. Like I’ve given up on the book and wasted all that time and might not actually get the thing done, but that’s where a schedule, determination, and a loving kick in the ass by your wife comes in. Because no one wants you to have wasted time more than your wife…she’ll kill you for it…she knows you’re afraid.

Anyone can pick up a book on keeping a schedule.  There are hundreds of thousands, flooding the market.  Books on scheduling your time in the office, home office, and freelance writing to name a few categories.  But, while writing a book can fall into one or all three of these categories, there’s something different for the creative types.  Something that comes with trial and error and that most books don’t often help.  I want to talk about scheduling the specific, creative moments that kick up the wind in the sails and cruise any writer and/or creative person toward their end point.

Now, I would be remiss if I didn’t give credit to my wife, who helped me to develop a fair and balanced schedule to maximize both my writing and researching.  Without her gentle nudging and loving understanding, I’m not writing this book, I’m playing Plants vs Zombies or Peggle or generally being lazy.  Because, the truth is, every creative person needs those moments of unwind or meditative zen, uninterrupted spaces where he/she can cleanse their minds of the book or whatever you’re working on and be a reed.  I took a class in college called ‘Contemplative Writing’ – one of the best and most beneficial writing courses I’ve ever taken – where we exercised various methods of meditating or simply allowing the ideas to come to you.  After all, when you fight with your brain (writer’s block), you’re going to lose.  It’s best to release yourself, take the ego out of the equation and simply let your subconsciousness or the ether of the universe or spirituality or whatever you believe in dust off the captain’s chair and correct course.

Recently, I took two weeks off from writing my graphic novel.  It wasn’t the best idea, but, having fought with a single scene for over a week, I decided I needed some time to not think about it.  So, I wrote a 3-page story and became heavily invested in the aforementioned Plants vs Zombies.  The first thing, the 3-pager, was a great idea.  I was able to put the big book to the side and allow the other ideas that had been calcifying in the back of the ocean of my mind (must keep the metaphor together) out.  And it was great.  The story turned out great and I had another short story that is currently being “arted” into existence, by the fabulous Kira Slaught, to show the world how versatile my writing is.  The other part, the Plants vs Zombies part, was defeatist.

I follow a lot of comic book writers on the Twitters, and all too often I hear them talk about playing a new video game.  At first it was Call of Duty 152 or which ever number they’re on (I’ve never played it) and switched to others, but one thing was clear to me, video games were helping writers.  The problem was, I wasn’t following all writers and found very quickly, in my own experience, that video games are neither going to help me tap into my ignored subconscious nor help me get my brain back into writing the book.  It took me out in a big way, and now I’m behind my self appointed schedule. (You thought I would never get back to the schedule thing, huh?  Ye of little faith)

But it wasn’t all bad, this weekend, Lindsay and I went to Gyeongbok Palace and the National Folk Museum and, by doing some hands on research, my on-board, creative motor was operational yet again (I will milk the metaphor, oh yes).  And I guess that’s the point: schedules are flexible.  They’re to be created and cater to each person; because, no matter how many experts tell you that playing a video game or taking a walk with their dog helps their brain reset, it’s not the same for everyone.  All creative types, however, need – and I can’t stress that enough – to struggle and fail with different schedules and methods of fixing their sails in order for their creative process to work right.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a painting to research…but first, a quick game of Plants vs Zombies…I hate you, brain.

I am, however, David Faroz Precht.  And, while I am half-German, I am not this gentleman.

That’s not to say I’m not impressed with Richard’s status.  Today, for the first time, I decided to look him up on wikipedia and read some lovely things about how he’s written two novels and three pieces of non-fiction and even the incredible fact that we were in the same city when he did his fellowship at the Chicago Tribune.

It’s simply that I wanted to clarify my presence here on the internets.  Also, because nearly two years ago I received an email from a great admirer of Richard Precht’s.  After Lindsay decoded the German it was in, I found that the letter was a heart-felt thank you to Richard for writing a book, the title of which we couldn’t figure out.  He talked about his childhood and how reading Richard’s book reminded him of his former life.  The problem was that Lindsay and I were reading it and not Richard David Precht.

There’s no doubt that after I responded, explaining that while I appreciated the letter I was not him, he might have been so timid as to blush or, as so many German’s do, bury his shameful feeling (it’s not shameful) inside.

So, again, I am not Richard David Precht but David Faroz Precht.  I’ve decided to use my middle name for this very reason, to differentiate us.  To make sure this sort of event doesn’t happen again because while I appreciated the email, I felt odd knowing that such confusion were possible.  Also, since I’m also a writer, this sort of thing will undoubtedly happen again.  So why not provide some kind of fail safe?

The next posts will deal with the writing of a graphic novel…I promise… (Since we moved to Seoul, I’ve used emoticons much more…Koreans love emotions)